Lost in Darkness
by Numb3rsfan
Summary: -Movie Verse- Alan is kidnapped and taken to an underwater city where he sees and becomes the stuff of nightmares. Will his family ever find him, and more importantly…is this all in Alan's head? AU/OOC Fic


Title: Lost in Darkness

Author: Numb3rsfan

Rating: M

Warnings: OOC, AU, Language, Mentions of Rape

Author's Notes: This is not my first fic but it is my first Thunderbirds fic. Forgive me I have only seen the 04 film and 2 episodes of the original series so this may seem different than what everyone is used to, hence the warnings. Also this is Alan-centric, there is very little of the other Tracy's.

Disclaimer: The Thunderbirds (tv show and movie(s)) are owned by their respective creators namely Gerry and Sylvia Anderson. I do not own anything except the city and all minor characters mentioned in this story.

Summary: Alan is kidnapped and taken to an underwater city where he sees and becomes the stuff of nightmares. Will his family ever find him, and more importantly…is this all in Alan's head?

_["In the house of upside down found is lost and lost is found." – Little Sister]_

Chapter One: Drowning

Fourteen and a half year old Alan Tracy sat underneath a palm tree near the tree line on the South side of Tracy Island; away from the house, silos and most importantly…his family. He had thought that the incident with the Hood a few months ago would have brought him and his family closer together and for awhile it had! Jeff Tracy, Alan's father had given Alan, Fermat and Tintin, Thunderbirds badges, making the three of them official Thunderbirds; after returning and cleaning up the island after the Hood incident, but after only three missions, Jeff's attitude seemed to harden and he began to force Alan, Fermat and Tintin to stay behind; saying it was safer than riding in the Birds.

To say the three children were angry was an understatement but there was nothing they could do, Jeff was the boss and his word was law…at least to them. For the past week all Alan had done was sulk. Fermat, while disappointed that he couldn't help fly Thunderbird 2, did help his father more, down in the labs. Tintin turned to her parents, and while it was clear that she wasn't happy about not being allowed to go on missions, she appeared to be happy to be with her parents.

That left Alan who_ was_ with his father and brothers, but that wasn't enough for him. He wanted to help out with the family business; _International Rescue _was the family business and he was once again being denied!

Alan was pissed, now more so than ever because he had absolutely nothing to do! His father had allowed him to leave school to be home schooled on the island but while that was cool for Alan, he had already done the day's work and now he had nothing to do! John had just been replaced on Thunderbird 5 by Virgil, for which Alan was grateful. He did like hanging out with John but for some weird reason, John didn't seem to want to hang out with Alan.

Sighing, Alan rose up from his resting place and dusted himself off, sometimes the sand liked to cling to his butt and Tin Tin's mother didn't like to clean up after him; or so it seemed to him.

Deciding to take a little swim, Alan took off his sky blue shirt, flip flops and jean shorts, tossing them all on to the ground. He quickly stretched before walking out in to the 75 degree sea water.

Taking a deep breath he disappeared underneath the surface and began to swim about. He loved the sea; loved to swim even. It helped him to feel free and it helped him to think. Growing up he remembered his older brother Gordon asking him if he had some gills, since he seemed to spend as much time underwater as a fish. Ah, those were the good times. Jeff and the brothers. Alan couldn't really remember his mother at all, just images and sometimes the sound of her voice…that was it. He had been rather young when she died and as such, all Alan had left of his mother were the pictures that his father had kept.

Diving down deep, Alan made a quick turn and was about to head to the surface for a quick breath of air when he felt something grab his ankle.

Glancing down in surprise he saw that nothing had grabbed him, but the sensation was still there.

_[What the hell?]_ he wondered. The sensation was very strange because he could literally feel the hand and fingers digging in to his skin, but what his eyes were telling him was that there was nothing holding on to him except the blue ocean water.

Trying to shake it off, Alan tried to swim to the surface but found he was unable to. Slowly he began to sink down lower and lower underneath the ocean surface. It was as if a great weight had been attached to him.

Lungs beginning to burn, Alan began to panic. Just what the hell was happening with him? He tried again and again to move upwards towards the surface but no matter how hard he tried he wasn't making any progress at all.

Finally he had no choice and he took a deep breath but all he could breathe in was water. He started to choke. Grasping at his throat, Alan's eyes rolled back in his head as he thrashed once…twice…three times before becoming limp. Slowly his body continued to sink until it gently came to rest at the ocean floor which thankfully wasn't that far down.

Chapter Two: A New Beginning?

A soft glow and a dull buzzing sound caused Alan to wake up and slowly open his eyes. Slowly the room he was in came in to focus. The walls were entirely white save for the windows which had small white, clear and turquoise/blue tiles in it. Sitting up, Alan looked down at himself and saw he was wearing a white jumpsuit that was the same shade of white as the walls. The white jumpsuit was a one piece suit, with black stripes running down the shoulders and 3 stripes (two yellow with a blue stripe in the middle) running from his right shoulder all the way to his left hip.

"Thank the Savior, you are awake!"

A soft, male voice behind him made Alan jump. Quickly he looked behind him and there, standing against one of the walls was a young male, no more than twenty nine. The young man wore a dark blue one piece jumpsuit with black stripes at the shoulders and three yellow stripes going from his right shoulder to left hip.

"W…who are you?" Alan asked, watching the man approach him in a very unthreatening manner.

"My name is Rikon, but you can call me Rick. What's your name?" Rikon asked.

Alan paused, thinking about the question. He drew a blank. He couldn't remember anything from before.

"I…I don't remember…I don't remember anything!" Alan mumbled, beginning to panic. He hated not remembering. It scared him greatly because he felt as if he should be remembering something!

"It's okay. I should have expected that. It's typical that the Rescued have blackouts. Your memory should return in time." Rick said.

"Where am I?" Alan asked. He didn't recognize the place at all. It was nothing like they had on the main land, or Tracy Island. So where the hell was he?

"This is the Recovery Room on the IL. That's what we call the Island of Light. If you feel up to it, I can show you around. That bracelet on your arm should have your floor and room number as well as a code to get you in." Rick said, pointing to Alan's left wrist.

Alan looked down and saw a thick, metal bracelet that held several strings of numbers and a silver looking barcode. Nodding his head in thanks, he took hold of the soft bed and gently got to his feet stumbling a little as he fought to regain his balance.

"Jackson…I remember! My name is Jackson." Alan said a little relieved that he could at least remember his name.

"Well Jackson, it's nice to meet you. Welcome to the IL." Rick said, helping Alan out of the Recovery Room and in to the main corridor that helped to make up the entire top floor.

Stepping out, Alan was amazed at what he saw. The city was huge with long glass looking walls all around. There was one wall up ahead that went from the top of the city all the way to the bottom. It was comprised of thousands of tiny screens that worked together as one to create a giant image. The image that was currently on it was a picture of the ocean with dolphins jumping in the middle of it.

Walking to the shiny white railing, Alan grasped it and carefully looked down. He saw that he was on the top floor with roughly nine others spaced out evenly down below. The ground floor was abuzz with people, and on the sides of the building were glass elevator cars.

"This is Luna 1. There are four Luna's all together, each one of varying sizes but all connected together. Luna 2 is the living space, 3 is the market and social center and 4…well…it's for the misfits. It's also rumored to be the power source for the city but no one ever dares to find out." Rick said, grasping Alan's arm.

"There are four elevators, two on either side of this floor that give you access to any floor in Luna 1. There are elevators such as those on all of the Luna's. The ground floor is the only way in or out of the Luna's. Curfew is 10pm, and if you are caught out afterwords you get a night out in the stocks…if you are lucky. Those who aren't…are never seen again. Know one knows what happens to them." Rick said.

He led Alan towards the elevators and took him down to the main floor and from there to the third floor in Luna 2.

"Let's see…looks like your ID says you are 1032473. A way to remember that is this. Ten is the area code for Luna 2. Three is the floor number. Twenty four is the hallway number, and seventy three is your room number. Quite simple really." Alan quickly found his room and got settled in while Rick helped him, explaining things about the city.

The IL as Rick called the city was seemingly a glass city underneath the ocean. No one knew how old it was or who built it and only a small number of them knew how to work the power systems to keep the city running. It was said that the Ground Dwellers as they were called, had all died and all of those above world had been destroyed by a natural disaster. Every now and then a survivor or 'Rescued' as they were tagged were found and taken to the city. No one knew how the Rescued were found or how they got to the city and it appeared that no one had the courage to find out either!

Rick, after explaining the layout to Alan left Alan to his own devices for the night. Not wanting to tempt fate just yet, Alan stayed in his room the first night and didn't come out until he heard the city waking up the next day. Stepping out of his room he followed the throng of people to Luna 3, and it was there that he found Rick in a small line that surrounded a small stand that was handing out something that looked like thin chocolate milk.

Waving at Rick, Alan waited his turn before he was handed the dark drink and told to move along. Sniffing the drink Alan was surprised to discover that it smelled sweet, having just a hint of honey. Sitting down across from Rick, Alan placed the drink on the small green iron table. He was about to say something when the low mumblings and buzzing of the crowd suddenly stopped. Wondering what was going on Alan glanced behind him and it was then that he laid eyes on a middle aged man with graying brown hair. He had some wrinkles covering his face but it was the eyes that seemed to captivate Alan. He watched the man grab a drink and turn to walk away and for just the briefest of moments Alan and the man made eye contact before the man was gone. Once the man was gone, the mumblings and buzzing resumed.

"Who was that?" Alan asked.

"Dr. Alan Jacobson. Jacob to some, but we just call him Doctor Deranged. He used to be a real doctor in our Wellness Center but he got thrown out when it was discovered that not only was he literally experimenting on his patients but he was also…well…how to put this…? I guess you could say he was becoming forcibly intimate with his patients…especially his male patients. Once people found out, Dr. Jacobson was banished to his small room in Luna 4. He's only allowed out three times a day for meals, and even then he only has twenty minutes; enough time to walk here, get his food and walk back." Rick said.

Alan nodded his head. From how Rick described the doctor, Alan didn't want to meet that man in a dark corner and all of a sudden Alan had the sudden urge to go bathe!

"Come on, the sooner you finish breakfast, the sooner I have a job for you. Everyone around here works on something; rules you know, so I decided to find you something…before you were handed an assignment from the Office and trust me you don't want them to find you a job." Rick said.

Chapter Three: Crime and Punishment

It had been a nine months since Alan had first arrived on the IL and in that span of time his 'memory' had returned but it wasn't the memory of his real family or the Thunderbirds, no it was memories that weren't his but he didn't know that. All he knew was that he had been a young boy living in a city called California with his father when all of a sudden a flash appeared and everything was gone. Alan could remember pictures, stories from his 'childhood,' but he didn't know that they were all a lie. To anyone outside the city it would have been clear that Alan and in fact everyone else had been brainwashed to believe the stories they had been given but the sad fact was there was no one from outside the city living in the IL, and from what the four thousand residents knew of the outside world, it had been destroyed. There was no way to leave the city either. The one way was by bathysphere but the rumors were that the one single tube was irradiated and than a thin shield was keeping the radiation from coming in to the city; a silly story really but one that everyone in the underwater city believed.

Alan's job was rescue and recovery; a job he felt that he knew well though he couldn't understand why. If the workers in the power room got hurt or injured, it was up to Alan and two others to get the injured man or woman out and get them to safety. A simple yet thrilling job.

The past five months Alan had been sneaking out to take quick exploratory walks around the edges of Luna 4. Most everyone had been banned from Luna 4 because the Office deemed it dangerous and not for the common man. Alan however felt the call of the 'wild' and had begun exploring; just on the edges. It had all been going well until last night when at last Alan had been caught.

He had slipped on a silvery clear, thick pylon that connected Luna 4 to Luna 2. That noise had alerted the automated system which sent four guards out to investigate. Hearing the voices of the guards, Alan had panicked and backed up, accidentally ripping off his bracelet ID when he brushed up against a sharp, cook shaped piece of clear metal. The bracelet ID fell down the Devenport, which was nothing more than a 4x4 hole in the ground that had tubes of wires running through it; the wires is what powered the city.

Alan was quickly rounded up and taken to the Office for questioning. When he had arrived the office was dark but small areas were lit up do to the fact that there was machinery casting off small bits of light. The room itself was large, roughly 30 ft long by 60 ft wide. In the middle was a large black granite desk. On the side of the desk facing the door was a simple clear chair. On the other side was a large comfortable looking black chair which sat empty.

Walking with the guards, Alan had been forced to take a seat in the clear chair and wait quietly. That's what he had been doing for the past ten minutes. Now however his wait was finally over when the office lights finally come on; albeit dimly, and a side door opened to admit a man in his thirty's to enter the room. The man was dressed in a strange sort of business suit. At first glance the suit looked unfamiliar, then a nagging suspicion that Alan had seen a suit like that somewhere before hit him. The suit was a dark green, almost black. The jacket was entirely black as was the pants. The shoes the man wore was a spit and polish style shoe that went well with the attire. The man himself had brown hair that was blond in some spots. He had dark blue eyes and he wore glasses. His skin was a little dark, as if he had been tanning for a little too long.

Silently Alan watched the man walk up to the desk and take a seat. A computer console that was built right in to the desk came up, allowing the man to read what the guards had written.

"It says here young man that you were caught in Luna 4, not to mention it was past curfew. I can't help but be a little curious as to why you would venture there. Don't you know it is forbidden to do so? Also it says here that you had no ID on you at the time of your capture." The man said.

He stopped talking, so Alan decided it was safe now for him to speak, but what could he say? He had been told numerous times that if he ever had to go to the Office, then he should not speak back to the man in charge, because the man was the one to decide his fate. But if he didn't try to explain things to this man…wouldn't he think that Alan was trying to hide something?

"Sir, Luna 4 fascinates me. Why, I don't know. Maybe it's the unknown factor. Maybe it's the thrill of disobeying. I go out there to explore, nothing more." Alan said.

He watched the man nod his head but looked down when the man wouldn't take his eyes off of him. It really made him uncomfortable when people looked at him for long periods of time.

"If this was the only transgression I would simply have you spend a night in the stocks, but as I said you are missing your ID and that cannot be overlooked. We cannot give you another ID, nor can we simply 'look you up in the system' as one might say. You might give us any number and propose to be someone you are not, so we cannot believe anything you say. Do not even bother giving me your name, young man because it falls under the same principle. You might give me a name that is not your own. I am afraid therefore that I have no choice but to send you to Cresen. You like Luna 4 so much that that is where you will now call home. You are banished now from Luna 1, 2 and 3 from this day until the day you die. If you are caught outside Luna 4 you will be immediately put to death. However you have three hours…and three hours only in which you may venture to Luna 3. These are for your meal times. If you are caught anywhere but the marketplace you will be immediately put to death. Do you understand?" The man asked.

Alan swallowed. He felt as if he should fight back. A yearning in his heart told him he should be stronger than this but a voice in his head told him to sit back and take what was being handed down to him.

"Yes sir, I understand." Alan said, glaring at the man for a moment.

The man nodded, waving several guards over to the desk. The one guard closest to Alan jabbed him in the neck with a syringe. Alan raised his hand to his neck in response to the jab but what was done was done. The world around him begin to swim and it was because of that that Alan stood up, intending to try and make it to the door but his legs wouldn't support his weight. Alan fell to the floor in a heap and as the darkness was about to claim him he heard "Take young mister Tracy here to the Garden. Make sure he doesn't leave unless it's with a new owner."

Ex astronaut Jeff Tracy sat in his office chair facing his desk. He was in his office on Tracy Island, looking at the family photos that were strewn across his desk. Some were recent family photos while others included his wife and still others had only one or two of his sons.

It had been nine months since his youngest son Alan had gone missing. Jeff had known that Alan had been unhappy with his decision about removing him from the mission roster but after what Scott had told him about Alan's last mission, Jeff had been quite adamant. Something happened in Thunderbird 1 that had caused an electrical short. Wires were smoking, valuable wires that were essential for them returning home undetected. Alan had told Scott that he'd replace the wires and while Scott had said no, Alan wouldn't listen.

Jeff remembered watching Alan reach for a switch before things went chaotic. One minute everything was fine and the next sparks were flying through the cockpit of Thunderbird 1 and Alan was shaking back and forth, his hand clamped tightly to the power knob for the Thunderbird.

Jeff shut his eyes not wanting to remember seeing Alan start foaming at the mouth while Scott worked to pry Alan from the knob.

Opening his eyes, Jeff sighed. After a week in bed Alan recovered but Jeff didn't want Alan to get hurt again so he had subsequently removed him, Tin Tin and Fermat from the mission roster. They were just kids after all!

Jeff knew Alan had been angry. He had known that Alan had gone to the beach that day…and that was the last any had ever seen of Alan. A search of the island revealed nothing except Alan's clothes near the beach and a visual and sonar sweep of the ocean floor revealed nothing except Alan's 'Thunderbird Badge' which Jeff knew his youngest always carried around with him.

At first Jeff had thought that Alan had drowned but no body could ever be found. Now he didn't know what to think. He wanted to believe that his baby, his son was alive and well and out there somewhere waiting to be rescued. All Jeff needed to do was find that needle in the haystack as it were. Easier said than done when there were no clues to go on.

After nine months the search parties withdrew saying that there was nothing more to be done. Even Scott, John, Virgil and Gordon gave up hope. Fermat and Tin Tin were still grieving over the loss of their friend and Brains and Kyrano were trying to help their children cope. The search parties may have given up but Jeff knew he certainly wasn't going to give up!

_['Hang on son I'll find you. Don't give up.']_ Jeff thought to himself, hoping against hope that some how Alan could hear him too.

Chapter Four: Hands of the Enemy

_['Hang on son I'll find you. Don't give up.']_

That voice…so foreign and yet…so familiar as it echoed in Alan's mind. Slowly Alan opened his eyes, listening as the voice slowly faded away. As his eyes got used to the dim lighting, Alan found himself in a room that looked as if a bomb had gone off in it. Trash was on the floor, kid drawn drawings were on the walls and the smell…God it smelled like a freaking sewer. Sitting up on the filthy looking bed, Alan brushed himself off and it was only then that he realized he was no longer wearing his bright white one piece uniform, but a dull grey uniform with what looked like grease stains all along it.

Rising up out of the bed Alan wobbled on the floor as he slowly made his way out of the room. Entering the common room he found at least twenty children all of varying ages playing around with old crayons and coloring books, old plastic toys and what looked like used finger paints.

What struck Alan as odd was that at least thirteen of the children were girls, and these girls looked to be no more than ten years old.

"So the little runt has awakened I see…"

Turning around to face the voice, Alan came face to face with Doctor Alan Jacobson who was brandishing a strange looking small black box.

"Doctor…Jacobson?" Alan asked.

"Ahh so you do know who I am boy…that's good. Let me welcome you to our little Garden here. Aptly named because this used to be a plant nursery…it still is a nursery…for children. All of the unwanted children and those unfit for society are sent here and since you are here as well, those higher up must have decided you are unfit as well. Bad for them but good news for me, heh." Doctor Jacobson said.

He grabbed Alan by the arm and gently led him down the hall. Alan went with him simply because he was uneasy being around so many young children. He didn't know why but young kids always made him queasy, that is except for… All of a sudden the faces of two young people entered his mind. A young female with dark hair and dark eyes. She wore a necklace that she slowly grasped and suddenly…her eyes turned yellow! As the face of the girl slowly faded, the face of a boy with brown hair and blue glasses came in to mind; something about the boy's face told Alan that he stuttered.

"Tintin…Fermat…" Alan muttered under his breath. He knew not how but he was certain that those were the names to the faces he saw.

"I'm sorry…did you say something?" Dr. Jacobson asked.

Alan shook his head. "No, nothing." He replied. He shut up as they entered a dark room lit by only one light that shone on a small bed in the middle of the room.

"Have a seat." Doctor Jacobson said, gesturing to the bed. All of a feeling that queasy feeling returned in the pit of Alan's stomach. He was now very nervous and knew that he had better not do what the doctor suggested.

"I don't think so." Alan replied, backing up towards the door of the room. Suddenly Alan felt as if he crashed in to something from behind. As the lights abruptly came on, metal arms and hands grabbed him from behind and easily lifted him off his feet. Alan tried to fight but it was as if he was trying to fight a sumo wrestler. Against his will the whatever it was walked forward and none to gently placed Alan on the bed, tying him down with velcro straps that were under the bed. It was only when he was secured to the bed that Alan saw what had grabbed him. It was a man…at least he thought it was a man…in a full body suit. Nothing on the suit was uncovered. The man's hands were golden metal gloves, and the shoes were also covered in metal. The helmet reminded Alan of an astronaut's helmet but covered in metal, with a circular port with which to see out of. The port however had only a single yellow light coming out of it. The thing moaned an unearthly moan that almost reminded Alan of a whale's call. Slowly the thing turned around and as it walked, the entire floor shuddered, as if the thing was very heavy.

"That is a Watcher; a beast that roams around all of Luna 4. They protect the Angels; young girls whom I have genetically manipulated to create this little beauty." Doctor Jacobson said, holding up a horse syringe that held a glowing red solution in it, "Isen 160 I call it."

Alan gulped already knowing what the doctor was going to do with it. "You bastard!" he called out.

"Come now my boy none of that…some day you may thank me. Besides…it's not like you have any family." Doctor Jacobson said.

As soon as he said that it triggered something in Alan's mind. Images came flooding in of a family; four brothers and an older man. A house on an island. Rocket ships…Thunderbirds, and suddenly he knew he just _knew_ who he was!

"I…I have a family! I am Alan Tracy, Jeff Tracy's son!" The way Alan said it; it was like it was a revelation to him as well as the doctor, but to Doctor Jacobson the surprise lasted for only a moment.

"Well maybe that was who you were born as but it is not whom you are going to become." Doctor Jacobson said.

"No!" Alan called out, "Just let me go. I promise I won't say of word of what went on here!"

Doctor Jacobson shook his head. "After nine months? Come on you really don't think I'd believe that huh? Besides…" Doctor Jacobson put his hand on Alan's thigh and gave it a slight squeeze, "from the time that I first laid eyes on you I wanted you so badly."

Alan couldn't mistake that for anything else than what he knew it was. The thought made him sick and the presence of the doctor made him sicker.

"Come now boy you will grow to like me…in more ways than one!" Doctor Jacobson said, sticking Alan in the neck with the needle.

As darkness came in to claim him Alan thought to himself _['My name is Alan you disgusting pervert! My name is Alan!']_

Jeff and the rest of the Tracy boys watched the news with great interest. It was all over the news about an underwater city in the southern Pacific Ocean. A map which pinpointed the location of the city was then brought up and the location of the dot caused all of the Tracy's to sit up a little straighter. It literally was just ten miles from the 'Curtain', Scott's slang term for the entrance/exit of Tracy Island's jamming technology which kept the island safe from detection. The reason the Tracy's never found it was the fact that it was on the ocean floor just miles from their detection grid.

"Can't believe we didn't find that! Hell, can't believe John didn't find that!" Virgil scoffed, eyes never leaving the television screen. "Well, Thunderbird 5 can't pick up everything." Jeff reminded his son.

Jeff quit speaking and moments later he was glad of it when the screen switched back to live coverage of an old looking bathysphere sitting on the surface of the water with its hatch open. On the shore was a young man with dark hair who wore a strange looking once piece jumpsuit with dark stripes on the side and three yellow stripes going from shoulder to hip.

The man was led to the back of an ambulance where paramedics began to check him over. Police were also standing over the man asking him questions, questions which the microphones of the reporters were also picking up.

It was clear that the man who called himself Rick came from an underwater city known as the Island of Light and that there were thousands of others like him down there. Rick had escaped quite by accident when he had gone looking for a friend that he called Jackson.

Becoming a little bored with the report Jeff was about to switch it off when something made him stop. Glancing back up at the screen Jeff listened as Rick described this 'Jackson' and when Rick had finished the entire living room of the Tracy's house fell silent. They all knew without a shadow of a doubt that Rick had just described Alan! Fourteen year old, blond hair with blue eyes and a small birthmark on his right shoulder…it could only be Alan!

"Dad, we have to go check this out!" Scott said, jumping out of his chair. Jeff nodded his head. He wanted to go too but the voice of reason began talking up a storm in his head. "I agree but we just can't go waltzing in to a situation without having some information first. We need to have a talk with Rick. He's been in the city he knows the layout. Once we have all that then we can go to the city. Boys," Jeff said as he stood up, "Thunderbirds are Go!"

Chapter Five: Fallen into Darkness

Hours slowly passed for Alan for all he could do was lay there on the bed while Dr Jacobson did his worst. At first the doctor kept pumping Alan full of different colored liquids that would either freeze the poor boy stiff or make his insides burn. Finally however the doctor had stopped but the nightmare wasn't over it was just beginning.

Every once in a while Alan would feel a hand running down his leg, his thigh and sometimes his stomach. At other times he could feel a hand touch him in his nether regions and every time that happened he wished to God it would stop. Sometimes that wish was granted, other times it wasn't. It wasn't just the simple touches that Alan quickly grew to hate it was also the burning penetration that he had to go through. Rick had been right; Dr. Jacobson was a bitch who liked to rape boys. Finally though it seemed as if the doctor had had enough because he then cleaned up his mess and then fitted Alan in to a big metal suit. He then soddered it shut before soddering metallic limbs over Alan's shoulders and legs. Next Dr. Jacobson fitted Alan with metal gloves; attaching them to the metal limbs.

"Okay young man, I need you to stare at this light…" Dr. Jacobson said, flicking a switch that automatically turned on a bright red light that was above Alan's eyes. Because of the stuff running through his veins Alan couldn't do anything but stare at the light. As he did he felt all his troubles simply float away. After a minute he couldn't hear or see anything. The light seemed to blind him, burning away his memories. Alan saw flashes of his family; his father Jeff, brothers Virgil, John, Gordon and Scott, visions of Lady P and her butler Parker…Alan also saw Fermat, Tintin and Brains but even as he reached for them the images were burned away. The light grew brighter and brighter and it became so intense that more than anything Alan wished he could shut his eyes but he found that he couldn't. Unbeknownst to him Doctor Jacobson had been tinkering with a metal helmet; fitting a black box in at the top and connecting it to a speaker. It was the voice box for the helmet and it would be the only way for Alan to communicate to the outside world.

Glancing up, Doctor Jacobson waited until he saw Alan's muscles go limp. It was only then that he knew the boy was unconscious, even though his eyes were still open; fixed on the light. Shutting the light off, Doctor Jacobson placed the metal helmet over Alan's head and soddered it in to place before activating the voice box. There he was finally all done with his newest Watcher. Once activated it would cease to be a human, it would be a machine. It would still have a human inside it but it could no longer be human.

Walking over to a machine Doctor Jacobson keyed in a sequence before a commotion outside sparked his attention. He went outside for a moment, just long enough to learn that there had been an escape to the surface; someone had actually gotten out of the city! It was great news to hear but Doctor Jacobson had more important things to worry about. Going back inside he went back to his lab where the Watcher was just starting to move.

"Wake up." He ordered. The Watcher gave a low moan which sounded like an angry whale before it broke its bonds and rose up off the table. Without saying anything else Doctor Jacobson watched the Watcher walk out of the room, its large metal feet causing the floor to shake. Slowly the doctor followed the Watcher outside and watched as it went to a little vent in the wall. None to gently it banged on it several times before a young pale looking girl in a dirty dress came out. The young girl was different; pale yellow whiteish eyes were her key feature as the girl climbed down and then took hold of the Watcher's hand.

"Come on Father, this way. I smell the mist and rain." The young girl said, leading the Watcher on. Smirking, Dr. Jacobson was glad to see that his newest Watcher was doing so well. He half expected some of the programming to fail but it seemed as if Alan had really taken to the Watcher programming. Oh well, least now he could go and rest. Turning, Dr. Jacobson decided he had better head for his home.

Half a day later the city was abuzz with excitement because of strange craft had docked in the bathysphere port. It was Thunderbird 4 and inside was Jeff, Gordon, Fermat, two police officers and Rick. It didn't take Jeff long to convince Rick to help find his son because after showing Rick a picture of Alan it was clear to Rick that this 'Alan' was Jackson; his friend so he had agreed to help locate him on one condition…that he didn't have to stay on the city. Jeff had agreed to take Rick to the mainland once they found Alan, and that was that.

"I heard from a few sources that J…sorry…Alan was taken to Luna 4 last night so really he could be anywhere by now." Rick said, leading the small team of people down in to the city. He had no doubt that the Office knew of their arrival which didn't give them much time to locate Alan and get him and themselves out.

They had just reached the avenue that separated and connected all of the Luna's to one another when a loud scream caused them to stop. Up ahead was a thing that shocked all of them. It was a metal man following after a sickly looking little girl. The girl was speaking in a weird sort of metallic voice and the monster behind her was moaning a little.

"Hurry Father, this way!" the little girl was saying, tugging the metal hand of the Watcher after her. The Watcher moaned a little more before he looked up at the faces of the terrified people; one after another he studied their faces until he came to the faces of the Tracy's. Abruptly he let go of the girl's hand and stumbled over to the Tracy's. It's gate was unsteady and a little threatening, so much so that the Tracy's all backed up. Rick however stood where he was and watched. Once the Watcher had stopped in front of Jeff, Rick asked "Alan is that you?"

Instead of replying, the monster just grabbed Jeff by his collar and began to drag him back to Thunderbird 4. Taking this as a sign of aggression the other Tracy's jumped on the monster, trying to break it's hold. The Watcher suddenly let go of Jeff and flung it's arms around, trying to detach the others.

Seeing this, Jeff decided to try a different tactic. "Boys stop!" he ordered. As soon as his boys let go of the monster, it settled down a little and just stood there even though the strange little girl was begging her 'father' to come with her.

Slowly Jeff approached the monster once more and looked deep in to it's single yellow eye as if looking for some sort of confirmation.

"Alan?" he asked. As if in answer the monster moaned once before stepping back.

It was clear to see that the conditioning had failed to some extent. While Alan had enough sense to recognize his family, he couldn't speak English anymore. "If you are Alan then you know why they are there." Rick said. He didn't receive any sort of acknowledgement but the Watcher did turn and begin heading towards Thunderbird 4.

Taking that as a good sign, Rick and the Tracy's followed along and once they almost reached Thunderbird 4 Gordon whispered "He's so heavy and so big that I don't think 4'll hold him. Maybe his suit is big enough for him to get to the surface?" Jeff hadn't thought about that yet because of his desire to get his son back home so they could help him but Gordon was right, that problem had to be addressed.

"Right okay…" Jeff muttered. He quickened his steps so that he was able to get in front of Thunderbird 4 before the monster could walk on to it. "Alan the way your suit is built we don't think Thunderbird 4 will be able to support your weight but Gordon suggested that maybe your suit is thick enough to withstand the outside pressure. He thought you could just swim to the surface." He said.

The monster seemed to contemplate this problem for a moment before it turned and started heading for the air hatch. Jeff and the others thought that the monster understood their plan but they didn't know for sure. They didn't get a chance to find out because all of a sudden the city began to shake. Bolts along the walls began to pop off and the windows that held back the water began to crack, causing water to leak in. Jeff and his sons looked at one another before rushing to enter Thunderbird 4. They, the police officers, Fermat and Rick had just sealed themselves inside Thunderbird 4 when the windows gave way, flooding the entire room within seconds. As Gordon steered Thunderbird 4 out and away from the city everyone was worried about Alan, wondering what had happened to him because as they left the city everyone saw that the Watcher was no where to be seen.

Chapter Six: Revelations

When the room seemed to explode Alan was taken quite by surprise. When he had left Jacobson's lab and claimed his Angel he had been totally under the control of the conditioning but when he had seen Jeff something in his mind had just snapped. He remembered them; their faces and names and he knew without a shadow of a doubt that he had to help them. Getting them to understand that wasn't easy but he did manage to get them back to their craft and that's when things got ugly. The city shook and then the walls exploded, letting in the sea. Alan was hit hard; his suit taking the brunt of the hit. Even though his suit was well bit it did start to crumble under the pressure. Water quickly began to fill it and before it could over take his mouth, Alan took a deep breath and swam to the surface.

He knew it was a long way and there was no way he'd be able to make it. His lungs started to burn almost immediately but he kept swimming. Closer and closer he got; the light shining on the surface of the water seemed to beckon to him, but even as he reached out a metallic hand towards the light, darkness claimed his mind once more and he started to sink…again.

"_Co…an…ke…p! ke up!"_

A voice from somewhere above him seemed to call out to him. Turning towards the voice Alan moved a little and suddenly the voice got clearer.

"_That's it Alan…that's it! Just breathe, ju_st breathe bro!"

Opening his eyes, Alan found himself on his side, gently being held there by Scott who was dripping wet.

"Wha…what happened?" Alan mumbled once he could breathe again. "You nearly drowned bro. Dad wanted me to come get you for dinner. I saw you go in to the ocean for a swim and when you didn't come up I went in after you. You were already unconscious by the time I could get to you." Scott said.

Alan looked confused. So was the last nine and a half months all in his head? Did it really happen in the course of just those few moments?

"A…are you sure?" Alan asked, "I thought…just thought it had been longer than three minutes." He had just pulled that number out of thin air; not really knowing how long it had taken Scott to get him to the surface.

"Course I'm sure bro, why? That overactive imagination of yours kick in again?" Scott asked, helping Alan to his feet.

"Yeah…guess you could say that." Alan replied.

"Well come on, Dad'll be plenty pissed if we're late for dinner and don't worry, I won't tell him about all of this." Scott said.

He watched Alan get dressed before the two brothers started out for the house.

"Thanks Scott and tell dad…n…never mind…I'll do it myself." Alan said. He was so glad to be back home that his father's attitude would be a welcome one. He told himself that he wouldn't mind not going out on missions; after what he had just been through, staying at home seemed like a welcome relief.

Scott looked at his brother questioningly but just shrugged his shoulders in response. As the two boys walked off and disappeared through the trees, hidden underneath a fallen tree log was a silver bracelet with the numbers 1032473 on it, as well as a small circular port off of what looked like a diving helmet. It was clear that the tide had brought it in to shore and there it looked like it was going to stay but for how long was the question and considering it was Tracy Island, discovery was an almost certainty.

Slowly a small black box washed up on shore right next to the bracelet. It had a red light on its top that was no bigger than the head of a pin. Slowly the red light started to blink and admit a low harmonic hum…..

**THE END**

_For now…_


End file.
